The Project for the Study of Collecting and Provenance (PSCP) aligns the Getty Research Institute's collections and the expertise of its staff with the work of scholars interested in the history of collecting, provenance, and display around the world.

At the heart of its operations are the Getty Provenance Index® databases, which currently contain 1.5 million records taken from source material such as archival inventories, auction catalogs, and dealer stock books.

What does provenance mean?

From the French word provenir, which means "to come from," provenance is the history of ownership of a valued object, such as a work of art. A full provenance provides a documented history that can help prove ownership, assign the work to a known artist, and establish the work of art's authenticity. See an example of how the Provenance Index was used to trace the ownership of Peter Paul Rubens's The Entombment after it was purchased by the J. Paul Getty Museum.